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Rector's
Messages
Harvest
2007
"The
Earth is the Lord's and all that is in it, the world and all who dwell
therein." (Ps. 24:1)
There
is a short time just after sunrise when the sun hovers huge, brilliant and
spectacular over the water. It's a miraculous event-even for someone like
me who is not normally an early "morning person". When I lived
on the northeastern tip of Cape Breton Island, the fishing boats steamed
out in the pre-dawn. They were at work and beautifully backlit during
sunrise. At the end of the day, not all that far away on the other side of
the island, there is a similar miracle. The sun hovers red and huge and
low before dropping below the ocean on the western horizon. I think of
Psalm nineteen "In the deep God has set a pavilion for the sun…."
I recall that well-known creation hymn "For the beauty of the earth,
for the glory of the skies." Just think of the out door venue for so
many great spiritual events, according to the scriptures: the call to
Moses in the burning bush, the crossing of the Red Sea, the manna from
heaven on the desert floor, the miracle of loaves and fishes on the grassy
hill, the appearance of the risen Christ beside the sea of Galilee.
Whenever Christians have celebrated baptisms in the waters of a river or
lake the symbolism is rich and refreshing. Out door Communion services are
alive with the biblical images of manna and of loaves and fishes. Saints,
prophets and average folk alike have communed with God in the stillness of
the great out doors. There is no form of human work that is not grounded,
directly or indirectly, in the miracle of creation. As the Psalmist tells
us "The Earth is the Lord's and all that is in it, the world and
all who dwell therein."
God's
creation of the Earth is the prototypical divine mystery. The Earth is
where God is revealed. It is where God provides. The earth and its
inhabitants are the object of God's redeeming love. The signs of our
incorporation into God's love in Christ, the water of baptism and the
bread and wine of Eucharist, are themselves creatures from the hand of the
creator. Surely part of our response to God in Christ is to respect the
earth as a spiritual place. Harvest thanksgiving can be an opportunity to
reflect on the connection between our spiritual life and our life on the
Earth. Do we know the Earth as a profoundly spiritual place? Do we care
for the environment? Are we concerned for the future of the planet? Are
the resources of the Earth shared among all God's children? Scripture
tells us that upon completing the work of creation, God saw that it was
very good. As partners in creation, ours is a work in progress. Dare we
say that our relationship to God's world is a good one so far? May we be
actively and continually thankful for the blessing of the created
order-the dwelling place of God's pilgrim people.
The
Rev. Canon Rod Gillis
Harvest
2007
O
God, the source of all life, you have filled the earth with beauty. Open
our eyes to see your gracious hand in all your works that rejoicing in
your whole creation we may learn to serve you with gladness, through Jesus
Christ our Lord.
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